Tobacco-stemming machine.



,No. 880,616. I PATENTED MAR. 3, 1908.

C. H. & H. E. B. ANDREW. TOBACCO STEM-MING MACHINE.

APPLICATION ILED 00T..25, 1907.

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H i PATHNTHD MAR. 3, 1908. G. H. a H. H. B. ANDREW..

TOBACCO STEMMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED COTE-25, 1907.

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No. 880,616.. l PATENTED MAR. 3, 1908. C, H. & H. E. B.ANDREW.

TOBACCO STBMMING MACHINE. APPLIoATIoN-HLBD 001:25, 1907.

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UNITED STATES PATENT oEEIoE.

CHARLES HENRY ANDREW AND HERBERT EDWARD BOOTH ANDREW, OF STOOKPORT,

ENGLAND.

TOBACCO-STEMMING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 3, 1908.

Application filed October 25 1907. Serial No. 399,173.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES HENRY ANDREW and HERBERT EDWARD BOOTH ANDREW, subjects of Great Britain, residing at Stockport, in the county of Chester, Kingdom of Great Britain, have invented new and useful Improvements in Tobacco- Stemming Machines, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in tobacco stemming machines and the object is to provide certain novel construction and combination of parts which render such machines more eilicient and reliable in action than hitherto has been the case. We attain this object in the manner as illustrated in annexed three sheets of drawings, in which- Figures l & 2 are respectively a Side view and a plan, Figs. 3, 4 8c 5 are vertical cross sections of Figure 1, the latter on an enlarged scale, Fig. 6 is a plan, and Figs. 7, 8 & 91detached side views of some modifications of our invention.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

a is the base of the machine, b, c are the endless traveling stem guide bands, d, e the guides for the said bands, and f, g the leaf carrying and spreading brushes, the said bands and brushes being arranged in pairs to travel in a horizontal plane and in the same direction. h the cutter for severing the lamina from the stem, i, 7c are the pulleys which support and move the said bands, Z, m the shafts carrying the said pulleys, n the gears by which the pulleys '11, 7c are jointly rotated from a vertical shaft l. The endless traveling bands l), c and brushes f, g are so mounted that when they meet, they run in the same horizontal plane, the lamina side of the stem bearing against the edges of and the lamina itself passing between the said bands and brushes, the latter carrying the leaf forward and at the same time spreading it and drawing the lamina side of the stem against the edges of the Said bands, see more particularly Fig. 5. By preference the said pulleys i, 7c are so mounted at an angle in relation to each other, that where the stem bears against the edges of the banda-the bands are closer together than at the opposite edges, so as to touch the lamina of the leaf at the stem only. At the place where the said stem guide bands meet, they run in guides d, e extending between the pulleys i, 7c, See more particularly Figs. 4 & 5, the lower one being secured to a bracket o on the base a and the top part to arms p fulcrumed to the former. In order to permit of varying the relative positions of the said bands to vary the space between them and to compensate for the uneven thickness of the lamina of the tobacco leaf respectively, the arms p are each provided with a set screw g adapted to rest upon the stationary bracket o and lplaced under the influence of a spring r or its equivalent.

The leaf carrying and spreading brushes f, g are carried by the wheels s, t secured upon shafts u, v, the shafts u being mounted in bearings 'w secured to the base a of the machine, while the shafts o are mounted in bearings depending from overhanging arms y fulcrumed to the longitudinal shaft z. The arms y have each an extension 2 carrying a set screw 3 adapted to rest upon the frame 4 of themachine and permit of varying the grip of the brushes f, g upon the lamina of the leaf, Above the shaft z a longitudinal shaft 5 is mounted in the depending part of the arms y and has rotary motion imparted from the shaft 2 by means of the spur wheels 6, 7 & 8. The shaft z is rotated from the driving shaft 9 of the machine by means of the worm 10 and worm wheel 11, cross shaft 12'and bevel wheels 18 and the brush wheel shafts u receive motion from the shafts z & 5 by means of the bevel wheels 14.

The brushes f, g are so constructed or arranged as to have a movementin the direction of the feed of the tobacco leaf and also a movement at an angle thereto and thereby while carrying the leaf forward, also spread it out and draw the lamina side of the stem against the edges of the said traveling endless stem guide bands.

The brushes f, g shown in Figs. 1, 2 & 3 are each composed of a chain 15 furnished with flat or sectipnal brushes 16 which a suitable distance from the cutter h are caused to slide from the said endless bands outwards and thereby carry forward, spread, and draw the tobacco leaf sidewise and to assume afterwards their normal position again against the said bands. In the present instance the said chains are composed of studsl or pins 17 linked together and are carried by and moved by the wheels s, t. The said studs or pins engage betweenthe teeth of the wheels s, t and the back ofthe brush sections 16 may be furdraw the brush section 1 6 outwards and afterwards push it inwards again. Where the said brushes meet, the said cam faces consist of one inclined and of two straight portions 2() and 21 8c 22 respectively, secured to the arms 28, 24 of the bracket 25, 26, the cam face portions 20 being situated at the place where the leaf requires drawing out or spreading and the cam face portions 21, 22 at each end of the said chains where the brushes are laterally inoperative; while at the top and bottom of the said/chains, only inclined cam faces 20 are employed to return the said brush sections to their normal positions on the chain. According to another embodiment of this part of our invention in lieu of employing endless traveling brushes composed of sections which have a lateral movement as described, the same result may be obtained by arranging the said brush sections laterally stationary upon the chain 15 and mountingthe endless traveling brushes f, g diagonal to the stem guide bands l), c, as shown in Figs. 6 & 7. In lieu of securing the said brush sections to a chain as described., they may be secured to an endless belt 27 as shown in Figs. 8 & 9. The said brush sections may be furnished with ordinary fiber bristles or covered with wire clothing, felt, india rubber or the like. endless traveling brushes may consist of card clothing only, as shown in Fig. 9.

The cutter h we prefer to employ for severing the stem from the lamina of the tobacco leaf is of the endless band type, see Figs. 1, 2, 3,4 & 5, carried by two pulleys 28, 28 secured upon shafts 29, 29 one of which has rotary motion imparted from any suitable moving part of the machine.

The improved leaf carrying, spreading and drawing out device is shown and described as used in connection with a moving stem guide, but it is obvious that it may also be used in connection with a stationary or other suitable stem guide.

In front of the cutter where the said brush sections 16 or endless traveling brushes f, g move away from the stem guide bands, we employ a grooved pulley 30 (or pulleys), see Figs. 2 & 5, mounted upon a lever 31 pivoted to the bracket o of the band guide d and placed under the influence of a spring 32 which tends to press the stem of the leaf against the stem guide bands b, c to insure the correct cutting off of the lamina.

We are aware that previous to our invention bands have been used for carrying the tobacco leaves a ainst a cutter by gripping the stem of the eaf also that leaf carrying bands have been used but not to act simultaneously also as a guide for the stern of the leaf, and that for the latter purpose in some Again, the said leaf is liable to wedge therein and thus jam l it. Dirt and gum are also liable to accumulate on stationary guides or holders which increase the friction upon the leaf and impedes the free passage thereof in a forward as well as a transverse direction and after a very short time completely blocks up the passages of the said guide or holder. In our invention these defects are entirely overcome by the employment of the endless traveling leaf carrier and stem guide bands described. The said bands being set at an angle and the stationary guides which hold them the correct distance apart from each other and take up side pull, being arranged away from the leaf, the friction between the guide or holder and leaf hitherto necessary to collect the gum is entirely obviated and gum which is liable to collect on the bands can be readily removed therefrom by the application of a roller or doctor as will be readily understood without illustration.

We are also aware that rollers or rotary brushes have been used for carrying the leaf through the machine and spreading-out the lamina, we therefore do not claim such.

We claim:

1. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless bands located one above the other a suitable distance apart from each other adapted to grip the lamina of and carry the leafforward and means adacent to the said bands for spreading out the eaf and drawing the lamina side of the stem against the edges of the said bands adjacent to the stem, all combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a

pair of traveling endless stem guide andlamina grippin bands located one above the other a suitab e distance apart from each other, grooved guides located where` the said bands meet to hold them laterally and vertically in position, the lower of the said band guides being stationary and the upper one fulcrumed and means for vertically adjusting the said upper band guide, all .combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless stem guide and lamina gripping bands located one above the l other a suitable distance apart from each other, grooved guides located where the said bands meet to hold them laterally and vertically in position, the lower of the said band guides being stationary and the upper one fulcrumed, a set screw carried by the latter resting upon a stationary part and a sprin tying the said upper guide to the latter, al combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth. l

4. VIn a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless stem guide and lamina grippincr bands located one above the other a suitable distance apart from each other, a pair of endless traveling brushes one above the other adjacent to and in the same plane in Which the said bands meet to bear against the lamina of the tobacco leaf and having a movement in the same direction as and at a right angle to the said bands, all combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless stem guide and lamina gripping bands located one above the other, a suitable distance apart from each other, a pair of endless traveling brushes one above the other adjacent to and in the same plane in Which the said bands meet, to bear against the lamina of the tobacco leaf and having a movement in the same direction and at a right angle to the said bands, a machine base, bearings secured to the latter in which the lower one of the said brushes is mounted, arms suitably fulcrumed and bearing thereon in` Which the upper one of the said brushes is mounted and means for vertical adjustment for the said arms, all combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless stem guide and lamina grippin bands located one above the .other a suitab e distance apart from each other, a pair of endless travelin brushes one above the other adjacent to an in the same plane in which the said bands meet to bear against the lamina of the tobacco leaf, each brush being composed of a chain and brush sections thereon adapted to travel in thel same direction as the said bands and means in connection With the said brush sections for moving them successively at a right angle to the said bands, all combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

7. In a tobacco leaf stemming machine, a pair of traveling endless stem guide and lamina gripping bands located one above the other a suitable distance apart yfrom each other and a spring iniiuenced pulley adjacent to and in the same planer in Which the said bands meet to receive and press the stem of the tobacco leaf against the respective edges 'of the latter, all combined substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof We have signed our names to this specification in the presence of the subscribing Witnesses.

CHARLES HENRY ANDREW. HERBERT EDWARD BOOTH ANDREW.

Witnesses to the signature of Charles Henry Andrew:

. A. W. RoBINsoN,

J. CoLLIs'rER.

Witnesses to the signature of Herbert Edward Booth Andrew:

ALFRED BossHARDT, STANLEY E. BRAMALL. 

